FROM RUSSIA WITH LUNCH (Cont.)
An excerpt from Chapter 1 - All Booked Up
"Zhen ve program ze readers' choices on zhis keyboard," said Dr. Lightov. As Pete kept adding books, she asked several kids what they liked to read.
"Mysteries," said Waldo the furball.
"Romance," said Shirley. I shuddered.
Jackdaw Ripper belched. "Anything with blood and guts in it," he said.
The inventor's fingers danced over the keyboard. She hit a blue button, and the machine went beep-boop-bop!
"And now," she said. "Ze Bibliomalgamator vill provide your recommended reading."
My three classmates stood and approached the gizmo. Dr. Lightov twisted a dial and turned to us with a chilly smile.
The bookmachine rumbled and whined. Thoomp — a book slid down a chute into Jackdaw's grasp.
"Tales of Miss Smoochy-Pants?" he said. "Where's the blood and guts in that?"
Dr. Lightov looked like she'd swallowed a stapler. She coughed and turned another knob. "Zhere," she said. "Now you vill see…"
With a loud buzz, the contraption began to shake. Then, whap-bap-whomp! It spat out book after book. The first few plowed into Jackdaw, knocking him flat.
"It's alive!" cried Waldo.
He turned to run, and the machine rifled a dictionary into his back, slamming him into the shelves.
"Yaah!" cried my classmates. We scrambled aside as books flew through the air.
Mr. Zero caught a stack of Hardly Boys mysteries in his padded gut.
"Do something!" he snarled at Dr. Lightov.
She and Pete fluttered about, punching buttons and twisting dials. But the book machinegun kept firing.
Finally, Cool Beans ambled over and yanked the plug from the wall.
Wheeeeeooooh, sighed the book machine. With one last ptoo, it spat a copy of Hairy Plotter IV onto Jackdaw's chest.
"Well," said the librarian. "Looks like I won't be packin' my bags as soon as all that."
